Are you stocked and prepared for the coming of Old Man Winter?

We all know that, following a seemingly-short summer and abruptly-ending autumn, war is waged on wintertime weather to protect our sidewalks, parking lots and building occupants from sleet, snow, hail and ice.

Ice and the inevitable slush the wintertime weather supporting trio morph into exponentially increase the chances of a slip-and-fall incident occurring — regardless of whether or not safety signage was properly placed.

Many manufacturers producing ice melt, plows, shovels and other products and equipment for removing or thawing snow and ice give handsome discounts for purchases made in the offseason. Those who take advantage of such early bird specials both save money and ensure they have ample stock when inclement weather hits.

But, by waiting until the flakes begin falling and the ice starts accumulating, you put your staffs and other building occupants at risk because your ice melt and snow removal distributor may be short on supplies — you likely have a colleague or two who were left out in the cold in years past, possibly during the snowmageddon of 2010.